"Now ice cream is potent, and Parkinson opens his portals and vends vanilla. Penn cockneys cram the dainty fabrication down their unrelenting mouths with marvelous insatiety." ~"Philadelphia in the Dog Days," Graham’s Magazine, July 1837

A member of the orchid family, vanilla comes from a plant that produces long, narrow pods filled with tiny seeds. It is actually a New World food, native to southern Mexico, Central America and the West Indies. Thomas Jefferson was apparently a fan, as he imported vanilla beans to flavor his homemade ice cream. However, the rich ingredient didn’t enter widespread use in America until the mid-19th century, when increased production lowered the cost.

Once it did become more widely available, vanilla flavored treats took off, and ice cream was no exception. In fact, vanilla it was one of the most popular ice cream flavors in the 1840s and 1850s, featured on the menu at Philadelphian James Parkinson’s 1851 culinary duel with New York known as The Thousand Dollar Dinner.

Parkinson's vanilla ice cream obtained its rich, decadent taste through the use of pure vanilla sugar, which contained small bits of ground vanilla bean, not artificial vanilla flavoring as is often used today. He even sold his own vanilla extract to be used in various confectionery. In an advertisement for this product he warns, "Never use vanilla extracts which are of a dark color. The pure article is of a bright, clear amber. The genuine vanilla odor is much more delicate, like the fine aromatic fragrance of flowers.

Parkinson's Pure Vanilla Flavoring

Parkinson was the unrivaled expert at crafting Philadelphia style ice cream, also called custard cream or Philadelphia cream, often considered the prototype of frozen desserts in America. During the second half of the nineteenth century, his ice cream was renowned as the best of the best—not only in Philadelphia, but throughout the United States. A staunch advocate for American foods, Parkinson boasted that the smooth and creamy ices made from rich Philadelphia cream were unique and original, a product of the region’s fertile bounty. “This delicious dish smacked of the fat of the land,” he said.The recipe I tried today came straight out of an 1876 issue of Confectioners’ Journal (a publication edited by Parkinson). The original is as follows:Vanilla – When vanilla bean is used for flavoring, prepare it by cutting in small pieces, and boiling in a small amount of milk or cream to extract the flavor; then pour into the cream, to which add one-third pound of white sugar to each quart of cream, and strain into the can. One vanilla bean is sufficient for four quarts of cream.My updated version:Parkinson's Vanilla Ice Cream

½ vanilla bean

1 quart heavy cream

½-2/3 cups sugar

Pour a little milk or cream into a small saucepan. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean into cream and heat briefly to release the flavor.

Pour cream into the freezer bowl of an ice cream maker. Add sugar to taste and the vanilla seed-infused cream, straining through a fine sieve if desired.

Mix until thickened, about 20-30 minutes.

The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. Feel free to eat right away or transfer to a glass bowl with a lid and place in the freezer until firm.

Source: The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink, Ed. by Andrew F. Smith

​This recipe has been one of my son’s favorites ever since he discovered it over four years ago in a cute kids cookbook he checked out of the school library called Cool Pies & Tarts. I had heard of French Silk Pie - perhaps on a restaurant menu or in a store, but didn't recall ever trying it. So I just assumed it would be similar to a chocolate mousse or chocolate cream pie. But this luscious dessert is even better. Delectable is really the best word to describe it. Smooth, creamy, rich - pure chocolate heaven.

So of course I had to figure out the history of this incredible dessert! It is a fairly recent phenomenon which dates back to 1951 when Betty Cooper from Kensington, Maryland submitted her original recipe for French Silk Chocolate Pie and won the Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. You can view this version on the Pillsbury website (the company says it is one of their "top 10 pies to try"). From there I guess it just took off, as a review of literature from the second half of the 20th century shows it popping up in cookbooks, magazines and newspapers, and more recently on blogs such as Ree Drummond's The Pioneer Woman Cooks.

One of the best things about this pie is that it is surprisingly easy to make and takes just a few ingredients. The original recipe says to use a regular pie crust, but the one in the kids cookbook suggested a vanilla wafer cookie crust, although we prefer graham cracker. As an FYI- it calls for four eggs that end up not being cooked and require 5 minutes of beating each (yes, a full 20 minutes total -this gives it that delicious ultra-creamy and whipped consistency). The recipe does specify pasteurized eggs (technically all egg products sold in the U.S. must be pasteurized due to the risk of food-borne illnesses), although many folks still might find using raw eggs problematic with various salmonella outbreaks. However, I honestly don't worry too much about that since I only buy organic, free-range eggs which pose much less of a risk. Also, folks that are very young, very old, pregnant or with comprised immune systems are more susceptible to issues with raw eggs, none of which fit our family demographic. (For those who are concerned, there are numerous French Silk Pie recipes that call for cooked eggs - here's one from Food.com, or just simply Google "French Silk Pie cooked" for others).Here’s the recipe we use:

French Silk Pie

INGREDIENTSFor the pie crust

1 1/2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup white sugar

6 tablespoons melted butter

½ tsp cinnamon

For the Filling

3 1-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

4 pasteurized eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

whipped cream (optional)

1. Place graham crackers in a gallon-size plastic zipper bag, seal and then roll over the bag with a rolling pin to crush into crumbs. (You could also pulverize them in a food processor, but kids find it fun to crush with the rolling pin).2. Mix the crumbs with the sugar, cinnamon and melted butter in a mixing bowl until well combined.3. Spread the crumb mixture evenly into a 9-inch pie pan, pressing firmly into the bottom and sides. Place the crust in the refrigerator while you make the filling.4. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Let cool to room temperature.5. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy then beat in the melted chocolate.6. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 5 minutes before adding each egg and scraping down the sides of the bowl every few minutes. (Do not skimp on the time for this - you will be well-rewarded for your patience!)7. Stir in the vanilla.8. Pour mixture into the prepared pie shell and chill for several hours